Louise Marquette
Personality :Lou is a rather determined young woman. Determined to prove herself to one and all that she is worthwhile, that she can accomplish great things as a journalist. She normally holds herself with a good deal of confidence, even when the situation presented before her is unlike anything she's dealt with before. The only option for her is to keep going forward, make it passed this obstacle, and learn from what has happened. She is ready to meet the world head on, using everything at her disposal to see herself through to the other side, even if it is by wit (and luck... mostly luck) alone. :Retaining a rather sunny disposition, it takes a good deal to darken her doorstep, and if something does manage to bring her down, it's not for very long. She tends to be warm and friendly to all she meets, perhaps that comes in part in growing up in a community with the "small town" disposition. She tends to be rather trusting, but not to the point that it'll get her killed. In theory.That's what her curiosity is for, after all - killing the cat, all that. She's never met a stranger and will happily strike up conversation with anyone about her. If they allow it, she'll keep asking questions until one or the other is required to leave. A natural journalist. She's quick to laugh, even at bad jokes, and her sarcasm has a teasing edge. :However, small town attitude and all, Lou tends to be rather blunt and direct. It is normally said with a smile, but she's not afraid to ask those questions that make most uncomfortable, nor will she shy away from making observations. If she is upset over something or is uncomfortable, she will simply tell a person rather than beating around the bush. After all, if one is direct, someone can never claim to have misunderstood. This can sometimes be an issue when the words flow right from her mouth without bothering to pause for filtering. Sheet Attributes: :Physical: Strength 1, Dexterity 3, Stamina 2 :Social: Charisma (Adorable) 4, Manipulation 1, Appearance3 :Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence 3, Wits3 Abilities: :Talents: Athletics 1, Expression 3, Insight 3, Integrity 2,Persuasion 1, Empathy 1, Streetwise 1, Scrounging 2, Vigilance 3 :Skills: Crafts (Photography) 3, Larceny 1, Research 2, Stealth 2 :Knowledges: Academics(Journalism) 2, Investigation 2, Computer 2 Advantages: :Backgrounds: Resources 2, Contacts 3 :Willpower: 6 :Flaws: Curiosity 2, Rotten Liar 3 Extra Expenditures: :Freebies: ::Attributes: Charisma 5 (Total: 5) ::Abilities: Vigilance 6, Insight 6, Computer 4 (Total:16) ::Total'':21 :'Points from Flaws:' ::Abilities:Crafts (Photography) 2 ::Willpower:3 ::Total:5 Specialties and Expertise ;Specialties :''Charisma - Adorable - Lou has a warm and open personality, an easy smile for just about everyone she meets. Between the bright, optimistic attitude, the outgoing demeanor, and the habit she has of saying just about anything that comes to mind, seems to have an overall rather endearing factor for many. : Expertise ' :''Crafts - Photography - Lou's creativity was generally focused behind the camera. Her minor was in Photography in school, and she found a great deal of joy in finding all the proper angles one could create in pictures. :Academics - Journalism - Lou graduated from the University of Arkansas with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism Merits and Flaws '''Merits: :N/A Flaws: ;Curiosity :Lou's curiosity is irrepressible. Something catches her attention, and she follows it through to the very end. This is one of the main reasons she went into journalism to begin with. There were any number of troubles that came about from this growing up, and it's unlikely to get any better now that she's an adult. ;Rotten Liar :Growing up, her parents loved this particular trait. Fact of the matter is, Lou never learned how to lie very well.She just doesn't have it in her. Either her nerves get the better of her or she starts giggling. Beyond that, she simply can't string together enough possible facts to sound convincing. This is probably why she figured out it was best to dig in one's heels and just be honest and direct. Less trouble, and she doesn't get caught in anything. Backgrounds ;Resources :Lou graduated May 2009, and during that time, she sent out countless copies of her resume and portfolio. After several months of nothing, she finally got a nibble of interest! A job as a journalist so she can use her degree, and lo! They actually plan on paying her for it. So she took her '03 Dodge Ram and moved into a little apartment not far from the newspaper's office. ; ;Contacts :Detective Michael Spencer ''- Detective Spencer works in Fraud at the Crystal Springs Police Department. They met soon after Lou moved to the area. Routine tends to make fast friends, and as the two ended up in the same cafe every morning, they started talking. Not the best of friends, but certainly on friendly terms. :''Kelly Donovan - Kelly works down at the city morgue as a clerk, and as such, sees a great deal of comes and goes. She's in charge of a good deal of the filing, typing of reports, things along those lines. Kelly is only about a year older than Lou, and graduated the year before from the University of Colorado. The two women live in the same apartment complex, and being the only two in the small complex of the same age, they started talking. :General - Lou is a generally outgoing person and tries to befriend anyone she meets. She's picked up a number of friends around town, none with any direct or specific influence, but combined she might be able to scrounge up a bit of information. History Is it rolling? You have it? Okay, great. Hello. My name is Louise Marquette, and this video serves as an initial introduction. Accompanying this tape, you'll find a copy of my resume, my transcripts, as well as my portfolio at the time of graduation. Included are a number of photographs as well as articles I wrote for the Razorback Reporter as well as a couple which were published in the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. I was born August 1, 1986, to James and Susan Marquette in Bentonville, Arkansas. I was born and raised there, as were my parents. And like everyone else in northwest Arkansas, my parents worked for Wal-Mart. That's how they met, actually. My father in ISD - that's Information Systems and Development for those who don't know, and my mother in Accounting. Yes, I am the result of a computer geek meeting a math nerd. Kinda scary, huh? I had a fairly normal upbringing. We weren't filthy rich by any means, but we were comfortable enough. It was only the three of us - they never did manage to have any more kids. My cousins used to say that once they saw what they managed to beget the first time, they were afraid to see what else they could manage. Regardless, it was a good life. Sure, Dad was sometimes on call during birthdays or holidays, but that's what comes from working a salary position. I like to think I got my work ethic from him. I was a relatively good kid, all told. Didn't get into too much trouble, though the other children in my neighborhood learned really early not to let me in on any of the real adventures. The moment a parental figure arrived, I would cave. For some reason, they always knew when I was lying. The cure for that seemed to be that the others just wouldn't tell me things. It got remarkably awkward at times, so I ended up spending a lot of time left to my own devices. I had my friends, don't get me wrong, but when they were up to any real mischief, they left me out, always afraid of what would happen if we got caught. For the record, my parents seemed to love ''this particular trait. My father would have entirely too much fun teasing me with questions. By the time I hit high school, I learned to simply refuse to answer questions when I knew I was going to get caught in a lie. Which was every time I tried to lie. It is better to be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt - ''take these words to heart. On the bright side, you know if you hire me that you'll always be able to catch me in a lie if I even thought of trying. Being left on my own for so long, I developed what I liked to call a healthy dose of curiosity. My parents (and my pediatrician) would disagree. From the age of six or seven, it seemed I was being rushed to the emergency room at least a couple of times a year. I've been bitten by a donkey (don't laugh - they have a worse bite than a pit bull). I've fallen off the roof of my elementary school, junior high school, and the high school itself three times before I was admitted there. I've been stuck up in trees, up on the water tower, even up on a radio tower(that one took the local fire department coming out to climb up there after me). When I finally got into high school, Chemistry class was the worst. When second semester rolled around, my mother showed up at the school and demanded that I be put in Biology instead. When I brought home a dead frog for further dissecting, she was at school the next day insisting I be transferred to Earth Sciences. I started writing for my high school paper - the Tiger Times - my sophomore year of high school. I was very good, admittedly, and I tended to get stuck doing the write ups for the various sporting events in and around school or covering what was being served during a given week in the cafeteria, but I was willing to work my way up. I never made it to the top, but by my senior year, I was assistant editor. While writing for the paper, it was something I was able to funnel my curiosity into in order to make it constructive. At least that was the justification as to why my mother insisted I join. Admittedly, I was against it at first, but after I got a taste, I couldn't get enough. Now, though I enjoyed the newspaper, it wasn't my only extracurricular activity by any means. My freshman year, I started in speech and debate. I tended to focus more on oratory and extemporaneous speaking than on the more dramatic events. I was in two-man debate as well, though I admit, I preferred the research that went into building of various arguments over actually getting up to do the actual debating. I never placed while I did debate, though I managed to grab second and third at several tournaments over the years for oratory. Went to State my senior year for it, though didn't manage to place. I was also in track, which I'll point out was the main reason that I was the one who ended up covering all the news events for my high school paper. I was involved and already knew most of the other students who participated in sports as there tended to be a lot of cross-over between the different events as one went through the various seasons. I prefer the short-distance sprints to the long relays any day. Still do. My junior year, I had qualified to run at State, however, I was in an accident a week before I was scheduled to run. I broke my right leg and was in a cast for the rest of the year. For the accident? It involved a deep, forested ravine outside of Gravette, Arkansas, and me trying to investigate the rumors about a cave being at the bottom of it. I found the bottom of the ravine far more quickly than I had anticipated. No cave. My junior and senior years of high school, another hobby I had picked up yielded more uses than I had expected - photography - and using it both for the student paper as well as supplying more than a few pictures for the yearbook at the end of both years. That really started with my family. Taking pictures at the annual family reunion, things like that. My mother had me enter some of the photos in the Benton County Fair, and I managed to win a couple of blue ribbons for it. The teacher who sponsored yearbook happened to be one of the judges, and was rather insistent that I start taking photos around the school. When I graduated high school, I was twelfth in my class and decided to attend the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, the same place my mother obtained her degree. My trip to State in oratory was able to garner a small scholarship, but that mixed with my track, experience with the school paper, and my GPA, I was able to earn more than enough money to pay for my education. My parents had told me long ago that if I wanted my degree, I was going to have to work for it, and I had no intention of letting either them or myself down. I already knew I was going to be pursuing my degree in journalism with a minor in photography, and unlike most people, I stuck with that throughout my college career. I was able to get on staff at the Razorback Reporter my freshman year, and again, I was starting out at the bottom of the food-chain. The difference, however, was I was going to be able to prove my mettle and work my way up relatively quickly. You may notice when you did my background check there were a couple of dings that came up. Four minor arrests for trespassing and two for breaking an entering. I hate to say it, but there really is only so much one can find discover by simply talking to people. I admit, I tried to lie my way out of the first breaking and entering charge. After two hours of babbling to the investigating officer and him not believing a word I was said, I finally remembered the old lesson from growing up - keep my mouth shut. After that, things became remarkably easier. Now, rest assured that, after 845 total hours of community service, I have learned my lesson. The broken leg and sprained wrist from the last trespassing incident might have something to do with it. I never served any time for any of these offenses, and they were each noted as minor infractions. The start of my junior year, I was able to obtain an internship at the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. I was an assistant for one of the journalists for the first year and a half. I was in charge of gathering all the research for him as well as trying to get details out of people who wanted to tell their story. Sometimes I would need to interview a good twenty to thirty people - for example when it came to reviews for the Benton County Fair, area crafts fairs, or the Wal-Mart Stockholders meeting. Occasionally, there would be a gem in there, but one had to go through a lot of rough to find it. By the last semester of my senior year, they trusted me to write a couple of articles on my own. In May of 2009, I graduated cum laude with a 3.60. I finished up a couple of last articles for both the Democrat and the Razorback Reporter, however, neither periodical had a full-time, permanent position available. I had initially simply sent out my resume, transcripts, and portfolio out, but our country seems to be in a bit of an economic slump at the moment, so that didn't work very well. I am hoping now that we've had a chance to speak face to face, you have heard my story, and you know where I come from. I hope to hear from you soon about employment opportunities. .... Go Hogs! Update: Out of all the copies of this interview that was sent out, even still there was only one response. Lou flew out to Colorado to speak to the paper directly. She stayed in town for several days, meeting the locals, going through the full interview process, gathering all the samples of her work she could get her hands on. She flew back home, expecting the worse. Two weeks later, she got the call. They wanted her. Her parents packed up all of her belongings (not that there was many to be had), and she drove up to her new home. Sparsely decorated apartment, new career, and quite an odd little community. She really just settled in mid-October 2009, easing into her new routine. Etc Category:Past PCs